Dragalia Lost: Halidom Archives
by SharpEyLogic
Summary: A collection of one shot stories centered around the many adventurers living within New Alberia's Halidom. Prepare for the meta to be poked at, questions to be asked and side adventures begun as the Halidom residents meander in their daily lives there, as a family of weirdos. Updated irregularly. One shots vary in length. Favorite, follow and review! Criticism greatly appreciated
1. The Playroom

**The Playroom**

**Note: This was written before mana spirals were released**

When adventurers weren't training, going on patrol, shopping, working in the castle or being deployed for missions, they often found themselves in the so-called "play room", where games and other entertainments laid. This was originally built to occupy the children, but it saw more frequent use with the more... unused adventurers in the Halidom.

"Ugh, this is utterly insulting!" Ezelith slammed her hands down on the card table, startling Norwin in front of her. A winning hand flew into the air and cluttered on the ground, "Why does Euden refuse to deploy me if I'm holding a dagger? The minute I pick up a bow, he showers me with praise about my talent like he should! But my skill with a dagger is clearly superior, so what's the big deal?"

"It's because Euden doesn't want you risking your small, unarmored body with only a short sword in hand," Xainfried replied as he scratched Fydon and Felyx's ears in the corner, "Seriously Ezelith, get some clothes on lest you get speared in the stomach"

"Excuse me?! I survived this long with my attire just fine!" Ezelith shot back, "That's beside the point too, dragoon. I just want to know why Euden refuses to let me fight with a dagger. I took down Void Zephyr no problem!"

"Until Rena came along..." Ku Hai mumbled and Ezelith jerked her head towards him, eyes ablaze with fury.

"Hey, it's not my fault that she can fire blazing beams of flame out of her blade. At least I have more style with my Howling Meteor!"

"Dearie, said Howling Meteor is why Euden doesn't deploy you," Cassandra said gently, patting Ezelith's shoulder to calm her down, "You focus so much on style over substance that Howling Meteor becomes a danger to the other troops"

"And you take forever to finish using it," Ku Hai added, "I'd say to just stick with a basic flurry combo like Renee or Alex does"

"And what? That's going to make me stand out enough to be used?!" Ezelith growled. Nobody said anything after that. Ezelith was prone to stabbing someone out of anger, "... Fine! I'll become so good at using a dagger that I'll be regularly deployed. I'll show all of you that I can get out of this limbo, as my own person!"

Ezelith stomped out of the play room and nobody rose to stop her.

"I'll calm her down. I know how to deal with people like her," Norwin sighed and headed out, leaving only Xainfried, Cassandra and Ku Hai left

"Well, on the subject of not being deployed, how are you feeling Xainfried?" Ku Hai asked, "Ever since Fjorm came along, you haven't been seeing a whole lot of combat"

"Yeah... my finest moments here have been taking on the Blazing Ghost a long time ago. Those were the days," Xainfried said forlornly, "That new Ancient Oath wyrmprint should give me a new lease of life, but…"

"At least you have a use in giant fiend raids, Xainfried. I'm not so fortunate now," A new voice said and all the adventurers looked up to see Fjorm by the door, looking dejected.

"Fjorm dear, you look horrible! Just what happened to you?" Cassandra asked worriedly as she went to pour tea for the ice princess.

"After many, many failed attempts at fighting High Brunhilda, Euden gave up on me. He deployed Elisanne instead and... replaced me," Fjorm confessed, tears running down her face, "Euden went through the trouble of forging the Limpid Lance for me and then he just... went and replaced me with Elisanne, armed with an axe. I failed him..."

"Oh Fjorm, it's okay. It's not your fault," Cassandra hugged the crying princess, "High Brunhilda is infamously a tough cookie to crack. Euden's just testy in his effort to defeat her"

"But what can I do now that I can't fight High Brunhilda?!" Fjorm sobbed "I can't fight Agni and I can't do well in raids with Xainfried here! How can I ever repay my debt to Euden?"

Cassandra was speechless after that. She looked to the others and they looked down at the ground, unsure of what to say either.

"Fjorm dear, let's... let's take a walk together for a little. Sort out your thoughts and feelings," Cassandra took Fjorm's hand gently and wiped away her tears, "Alfonse can comfort you about this as well and when you're ready, let's take this up with Euden himself. Are you okay with that?"

"O-okay..." Fjorm sniffled and the two of them left the playroom.

"Well that was depressing," Xainfried stood up, gathering the cards Ezelith scattered, "Up for a game, Ku Hai?"

Ku Hai shrugged before sighing, "Sure. It burns time at least"

And so, as the trials against the Greatwyrms grew harder and the so-called "meta" grew more tight, more and more adventurers would be crammed into the play room


	2. An Imitation of Pleasure

Halidom Archives: Chapter 2 - An Imitation of Pleasure

"Rare Monster entry #7: Squishum. Exceedingly rare blobs made of an unknown, yellow substance. Only found within the Void, it latches onto fiends and dragons infected by dark mana, seemingly feeding on the miasmic energy. It does not appear to be affected by the corruptive nature of it and when in contact with humans, is actively harmless. All it does is stare up at the subject, blinking its beady eyes. It does not seem to have any primitive functions, but its squishiness is undeniable"

"Its squishiness is undeniable…" Sinoa repeated as she gazed upon the squishum's image, taking in its slime-like yellow body and clueless black eyes. It really DID look squishy, "What an odd detail to remark on. Is it so lacking in function that there's nothing else to mark upon? This intrigues me…"

"W-what are you doing, Sinoa?" Althemia's timid voice came from the door and the scientist turned to see her fellow researcher, closed off as usual, "I didn't hear any explosions from your room for a while, so I got worried…"

"Eh heh, I don't spend every waking moment experimenting, Althemia," Sinoa got up, showing her book page to the dark mage, "I'm reading this: "The Ancient and Rare Fiends of Alberia - Volume 3". One of these monsters intrigue me"

"Oh? What is it?"

"The Squishum," Sinoa tapped on the blob's portrait with her finger twice, "It says they are extremely rare blobs that live in the Void and latch onto fiends infected with dark mana. Nothing very noteworthy but…"

"But…?"

"This blurb at the bottom. They note that the Squishum's squishiness is undeniable," The fire mage frowned, "Why would they note something like this for a rare monster?"

"Probably because its squishiness is undeniable. That may be its only function," Althemia shrugged, "What, do you want to touch it for yourself?"

"Well, of course! I'm a scientist and if they say the squishum's squishiness is undeniable, I must experience it for myself!" Sinoa declared and Althemia yelped quietly by the sudden noise increase, "Oh, sorry about that, Althemia"

"It's… fine…" The sylvan whimpered, "So are you going to venture into the Void then?"

"Yeah… although I doubt I can study a squishum if it's latched onto a fiend. I'll need others to help me fight them," Sinoa closed her book, looking up at Althemia, "You wouldn't mind coming along, right?"

"Wh-what? Me?" Althemia's eyes went wide as she fumbled her robe for her wand, "What would you want me for? Surely Veronica or Cleo can serve as better dark mages"

"I can tell that you're curious about the squishum too," Sinoa tapped Althemia's forehead lightly, "So what's wrong with a little field work? You ARE a researcher, right?"

"S-sure, but we're dealing with void fiends and dragons down there. We need some more firepower!" Althemia protested, "A certified fiend hunter, a healer and probably more than that…"

"You know four is the magic number when it comes to expedition parties. I think we should refrain from going higher," Sinoa chewed her lip, "Let's take Victor and Verica then. Victor is one of the Halidom's best warriors and I'm sure he's free now"

"And Verica's one of the best healers here," Althemia nodded, getting excited, "Let's go find them!"

"Right!"

…

"As long as I'm around, the Shadewolves will never die" Victor declared decisively as he sheathed his Horizon blade, watching the Greedy Manticore fade into particles of dark mana. Verica and Sinoa took quite a beating in the battle in part to the Manticore's aquatic nature, but the fiery healer patched both up just fine. Althemia was picking through the loot, looking for anything notable.

"Nothing but a couple void leaves and fiend bits," The shadow mage murmured as she gathered the resources into a bag, "We battled more than a few void fiends down here already. Where would a squishum lie…?"

"Hm, I feel like we aren't hunting strong enough prey. The squishum likes to feed on dark mana, right?" Sinoa scratched her chin, trying to remember its entry in the book, "So given that, it's probably latched onto a dragon somewhere here"

"I have experience fighting in the void before and out of all the dragons present, Zephyr's the easiest to handle," Victor suggested as he gestured to Verica, "Especially with Verica on our side, it should be easy to quash. We would do good to avoid Agni and Nidhogg"

"Good idea. Deeper into the void, everyone!"

The Void got weirder and weirder the deeper the group trekked. Isolated in a space between worlds, the Void resembled the world of Grastea to a teeth, except it was riddled with mind-bending mirages and ripples, as if the ground and air itself weren't stable. Anytime a void fiend or dragon was fought, it was in a familiar area in the outside world, but it didn't make it any less creepy knowing this parallel world was filled with dangerous fiends.

"You know, despite this layout, I think we can deduce that the Void works on time-related layers," Althemia theorized as the four walked, searching for void dragons, "The longer we stay, the deeper we go. And that's where we find void dragons"

"That doesn't make this place any less confusing to navigate," Victor frowned, scanning the area, "We need a forest if we want to find Zephyr. But it's nothing but empty space around us"

"It really does put your mind on edge, doesn't it? Knowing that the space between worlds is as… trippy as it is," Verica agreed as she shuffled along with her long robes, "That and there's no discernable entrance or exit out of here"

"Not to worry. All the fiends here drop Otherworld Fragments," Sinoa shook her head, drawing a purple piece of void matter out of her pouch, "We can use these to leave at any time"

"Ah, that puts me at ease"

"SQEEE!" Suddenly, a loud, bird-like shriek ripped through the air from above and Victor instantly perked towards it, like he recognized it.

"That's the cry of Void Zephyr! Quick, light a fire to get its attention!" The mercenary commander called and Sinoa nodded, sparking a bright flame on her Terranigmus.

"Blundering Bomber!" The scientist cried and a spike of molten flame erupted out of the ground in front of her, casting a bright light in the randomness of the void. Zephyr screeched again, noticing the flame and veered towards the group.

"H-he's coming! Prepare for battle!" Althemia cried and gripped her Accursed Vare as the former ruler of the skies descended upon the party, warping the void around it to turn into the Mistholt forests.

"SQUEEE!" Zephyr screeched and flapped its wings, blasting a blade of wind towards the four. That was their cue that the battle began and they all split apart, with Victor baiting Zephyr's attention.

"Come get some, fiend!" Victor's blade slashed and whirled like the wind as he contended with Zephyr's flurry of pecks and gusts. The dragon fired a gust that torn Victor's sleeve open, but he didn't stop and continued attacking, "Steel Formation!"

Dozens of emerald green swords fell from the air, bombarding Zephyr with razor sharp gales. Despite the dragon being made of wind, he apparently wasn't resistant to his own element and shrieked in pain as the gales tore open its skin, leaving many bleeding cuts. That was when it closed its wings on itself.

"He's about to do his shockwave. Brace yourself!" Victor called and stood his ground with his force strike. The others hid behind trees and other obstacles as Zephyr outstretched its wings again, firing a shockwave that briefly sundered the ground and cut open Victor's torso.

"Blessings of Destiny!" Verica intoned to heal up Victor before turning to Sinoa, "We can't overpower Zephyr like this. Not enough flame spirits to burn Zephyr's wind"

"You're right. We need the dragon's power!" Sinoa finished her brief volley of fireballs towards Zephyr before reaching into her pouch, drawing out a dragon crystal, "Agni, I invoke thee!"

"I-I can help too! Shinobi, come!" Althemia cried and summoned her own dragon, a mighty ninja warrior clad in shadows. Sinoa's Agni was a burly dragon surrounded by primal flames.

"Victor, keep it down! We're going in!" Sinoa called, gesturing Agni to charge towards Zephyr, who was still brawling with the mercenary leader. Shinobi did the same.

"Got it! Lethal Stratagem!" Surrounding himself with protective wind energy, Victor leaped, summoning a flagpole in place of his blade and dove it straight into Zephyr's wing, making it roar in agony. Pinning the dragon down with the flag, Victor took the opportunity to re-summon his blade and slash apart Zephyr's face before the dragons arrived.

"**DEVASTATION!"**

"**Shuriken Shower!"**

Victor leapt back as Agni and Shinobi's dragon skills slammed into Void Zephyr with all their might, with Agni's Devastation sundering the very ground in molten flame. Before the fiend could even screech, it was burned to nothingness by flame and shadow. As the party caught their breath, Sinoa and Althemia withdrew their dragons.

"What a fight…" Sinoa panted as she approached the spoils of war that dropped from Zephyr. Miraculously, they weren't torched by Agni's strength, "Let's hope the squishum is in here"

Digging through the pile of Zephyr Scales, Runes and void leaves, Sinoa finally happened upon the familiar orange blob, "There it is!"

Scooping it up, Sinoa gazed at the blob as its beady black eyes stared back. Experimentally, Sinoa squished it with her palm and it felt like it was tickling her hand. It really was nice and squishy! And in a relaxing way.

"Ah ha! Here it is!" Sinoa grinned triumphantly, "We found a squishum! The expedition was a success!"

"Let me have a look," Althemia took the blob from Sinoa and grasped it herself, "Wow… the squishiness really is undeniable. It's comforting to do it… like…"

"That's probably your fatigue speaking," Verica smiled lightly before turning to Sinoa, "Now then, we should return back. The others would be worried"

"Right. Let's go home, everyone!"

…

"What?! What do you mean it doesn't feel squishy?"

Back at the Halidom, Sinoa was passing her squishum along for them to experience the squishiness and Albert of all people thought it wasn't so.

"I'm not lying. This thing feels as hard as a rock," Albert gave it back to Sinoa, "I dunno what you're getting out of it, but…"

"No, no, that can't be right! The book said its squishiness is undeniable! Surely there's a mistake…" Sinoa frowned before rushing back to her room, bringing back The Ancient and Rare Fiends of Alberia. She flipped through the pages until she got to the squishum's entry and… "Oh?"

"What is it?" Althemia asked as Albert quietly left the scene.

"I uhh… didn't account for this," Sinoa replied sheepishly as she showed the shadow mage the page, "Turns out this "squishum" is not really one. It's an imitation"

"An imitation squishum," Althemia read off the page curiously, "Said to resemble the squishum is all ways, there is no discernable difference besides its deniable squishiness. So this thing isn't the real deal after all, huh?"

"Yeah. The real squishum must be rarer," Sinoa sighed as she held up the imitation squishum in her hand, "You caused me some real trouble here, you know that?"

The squishum said nothing, simply staring back with its cute black eyes.

"I mean, it can't be the worst thing in the world, right?" Althemia protested, "It's still squishy and relaxing. Maybe we could use it as a… stress reliever. Or something like that"

"Yeah… it could really help with the Halidom's morale. Everyone knows this war is taxing on all of us," Sinoa nodded thoughtfully, "Okay, what if we have Kleimann clone this stuff so we could pass it around the Halidom?"

"What about the people who don't find it squishy, like Albert?"

"True. That would mean we need the real squishum," Sinoa frowned, "That means journeying into the Void again"

"Ooh, please no"

"Don't worry. I'll pester you about it another day!" Sinoa grinned playfully and Althemia yelped in surprise, "For now, let's do what we can today. To Kleimann's lab!"

"Err, okay!"


	3. United by One Purpose

**United by One Purpose:**

Crickets sang into the night as one man departed from the Halidom alone, intending to head to the beach nearby for a relaxing stroll. He always took that time for himself, away from peering eyes and probing questions. Seeing the silvery moon in the dark blue sky alongside the scattering array of stars put his weary mind at ease. His name was Audric, a warrior from another timeline.

"Hm…" Audric sighed to himself as he sat down on the sand, feeling the grains seep into his gloved palms and the chinks of his black armor. He wasn't very concerned about those little details however and just wanted to relax. Another nightmare of the ruined future plagued his mind and it was no use tossing and turning over it. Unclasping the straps on his Zodiark-hewn sword, the Absolute Hex, he placed it beside him before closing his eyes, simply listening to the peaceful ambience of the ocean.

"I wasn't aware someone had the same idea as me," A new female voice said and Audric's eyes snapped awake as he snatched up his sword before turning to the adversary, "Ah! Lower the blade please! I'm your ally!"

"Ah, pray forgive me. I'm afraid I'm on the paranoid side, especially when I'm alone," Audric admitted as he lowered his sword, looking over the person who arrived. She wore an elegant dress of black and gold silk with a sash and several metal armlets. Contrasting the icky colors was a head of radiant blonde hair and striking blue eyes. Something about her was intensely familiar, but what was it?, "I don't believe we've met before. You are?"

"I'm named Zena. I recently joined in Prince Euden's fight against The Other," The woman replied softly before her eyes scanned over Audric himself, "You look distracted"

"I'm sorry," Audric apologized again while shaking his head, "It's just that you bear a striking resemblance to my youngest daughter. Alas, her form was lost to time where I came from"

Zena flinched at that, but quickly regained her composure. Audric raised his eyebrow, a mite confused.

"I-I'm sure it was a mere coincidence. In any case, mind if I sit alongside you?" Zena asked gently, "I sense a great and terrible darkness in your heart and wish to set it just a little more at ease"

"What could you possibly know about what I've been through?" Audric replied, a little colder than he wanted, but Zena simply smiled knowingly as she sat beside the swordsman, stretching her legs.

"More than you know. Now relax your burdens," Zena glowed with an ethereal blue light briefly and Audric felt himself lighter, like something was literally pulling the weights off his shoulders, "I've fought against terrible fate before. Nothing you share could possibly be something I can't shoulder"

"Hm, is that so? Have you seen all your countrymen drown in despair as they are put to the sword, cowering in the shadows of dragons?" Audric asked and Zena nodded, "Have you seen the ones you love most dear become the scion of apocalypse?"

"All of that and more," Zena replied and Audric frowned, slightly shocked before continuing.

"Have you seen the world become so devoid of order and justice that men lynch your closest allies? Have you seen the irreversible world and sacrifice I've had to go through?"

"Perhaps not exactly, but I've seen and experienced exactly what you've been through, Audric," Zena said soothingly, "You aren't alone in your dread"

"Just who are you…?"

"A time traveler. I'm Auspex Zethia from another timeline," Zena declared, "I took the name Zena to distance myself from the current Zethia in this world"

"No wonder you felt so familiar. You are Zethia, my youngest daughter, yet not…" Audric frowned, his mind a little frazzled, "I'd wager you're curious about me after my story"

"Well, you referred to me as your youngest daughter. I think I can piece it together now," Zena smiled, "I'm happy to see you again… Father. King Aurelius"

"Please, I'm not worthy of such a title as king. I've disgraced my people far too much," Audric shook his head, drawing closer to Zena. Despite her not being his true daughter, he felt the familial connection grow stronger already. His world was already dead already, so why not find new life in this one? Before Audric could react, Zena leapt onto him in a hug "Huh?"

"You looked like you needed one, Father," Zena said gently, "You look like you haven't slept well in years"

"You'll be right on that front," Audric nodded, embracing Zena back, "Regardless, I'm happy to see you too. You don't know how much I've missed you and your siblings. Your compassion is a welcoming beacon"

"Heh. Well, I'm glad that aspect didn't die in me," Zena smirked as the two pulled apart and admired the sea together, "Now then, when did you become so young, Father? Last I recalled, you were quite the imposing king"

"Ah yes, that's the results of the struggles in my time," Audric flicked the blonde hair out of his eyes. The golden pigment has long since died thanks to harrowing depression, giving Audric's hair a bit more of a dirty sheen, "Alongside The Other, there was the mighty dragon Chronos, who could turn back time"

"I'm… afraid I don't follow. Chronos turned back time and made you younger and thus stronger?" Zena asked in confusion and Audric shook his head.

"No. They did so to remove my pact with Zodiark," Upon the calling of the name, the shadows around the duo seemed to darken, but they didn't mind, "Chronos is an unholy combination of all the Greatwyrms and Zodiark in particular holds the most sway over time. They knew I might utilize his power to thwart them"

"How terrifying. An amalgamation of all the Greatwyrms…" Zena shuddered at the thought, "That is a farce against Ilia herself"

"Indeed. However, I and Zodiark managed to resist it and benefit well from the time reversal. The Shadowwyrm became stronger in fact," Audric explained, "In any case, the rest of the story is shrewd with despair and hatred that I don't want to burden you with"

"No, no! Please share it with me," Zena insisted, "Anything to lift the stress off your heart. It pains me to see you in such despair, Father"

"Nay, I cannot impose that on you, my daughter. It would sully my duty as a parent," Audric shook his head, standing up, "Besides, dawn arrives. The others will be awake soon"

"Ah, I didn't even notice," Zena rose, watching the silver moon dip below the horizon as the morning sun rose behind the duo, lighting the sky ablaze. The two of them watched it in awe, "I always loved seeing the dawn like this"

"Why so?"

"It reminds me that hope still exists. The sky was always clouded by darkness back in my world," Zena grasped her golden staff tightly, reminiscing on the memories, "As such, concepts like sunset and sunrise were rare. But when they did happen, I always cherished them"

"It's a renewal that no matter what happens, life moves on, even when dragons themselves blot the sky," Audric agreed, "Yes, the sun was often my beacon of hope as well"

"It was my only ally in those times. But it kept me going regardless," Zena nodded, "Because I told myself that until the sun itself was extinguished, I would never give up in my quest to save my brother and the world"

"A worthy oath"

"But now that I'm here, I have others who share my cause and with that, they are new sources of hope and things to fight for," Zena tapped Audric's shoulder, "You included. So don't be afraid to let loose your troubles on me. I understand better than anyone"

"... Thank you, Zethia. I am truly blessed to have someone like you," Audric closed his eyes, feeling the slightest of tears well up. His tears have dried long ago, but to finally have someone who truly understood his troubles, sacrifice and the literal hell he's been through was too much, "I-I can't…"

"Don't say a word, Father. Let your tears run free," Zena encouraged as she embraced Audric again gently, patting his back, "You've sacrificed too much. You deserve to get it off your chest"

"Yes…" Audric sniffled and he felt Zena cry over his shoulder silently as well, "Thank you…"

"Let's fight fate together, Father. Hand in hand," Zena whispered, "We've both seen and been through the hell of the future. We should combat it side by side now"

"Nothing would make me happier, Zethia…"

The two of them remained as they were on the beach until dawn rose into the morning and birdsong filled the Mistholt, rousing the residents of the Halidom. Later they would remark that Zena and Audric's moods improved significantly, but neither would tell the reason why.

For they were two time traveling warriors whose only allies were each other...


End file.
